CNN Radio News Day is an evening news program providing an informative, thoughtful and creative look at the day's events. It's posted Monday through Friday at 4:30 pm ET.

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(CNN) – Welcome to CNN Radio News Day.

Here are some of the stories we cover in today's edition:

The deadly attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya five weeks ago ignited a political debate over what U.S. intelligence knew and when. Government emails obtained by CNN reveal that White House and State Department officials knew two hours after the attack that an Islamic extremist group had claimed responsibility. But CNN Executive Editor Tim Lister says the emails don't advance our knowledge of what happened very much:

"Ansar al-Sharia is like the Rotary Club, well, with a difference. There are so many of them in so many different Arab countries. There are so many Facebook pages, Twitter pages, associated with Ansar al-Sharia's' whether they're Libya, Morocco, Egypt, Yemen. It's very difficult to tell that this posting... would actually suggest the Benghazi branch of Ansar al-Sharia was intimately involved with this attack."

There's a new name in all the talk about terrorism – Mali. Groups including al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb now control the northern part of this West African nation. Canadian diplomat Robert Fowler was held by militants in Mali for three months:

"For the first time, al Qaeda has its own country... We have to ensure that al Qaeda has no place to hide."

There are now only 13 days left before the U.S. presidential election. Opinion polls show President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney virtually tied in several key swing states. CNN Radio's Lisa Desjardins says they're focusing their attention on getting supporters to the polls – and on a handful of voters who remain undecided:

"What stands out in this last pitch, what you can see if you step back, is where the candidates think they need work and where they think their opponent is weak."